"Notify the sect members in Hall No. 3 to purchase that Dragon Whisker Ice-Fire Fruit."
Ning Tian waved towards a young man in a light blue robe not far away. After hearing Ning Tian's instructions, the young man nodded and quickly left the auction hall.
Huo Yuhao and Ning Tian exchanged smiles. Upon seeing that the Dragon Whisker Ice-Fire Fruit was listed for auction, Huo Yuhao had Ning Tian send someone ahead to the Starlight Auction House.
Though participation in the auction required certification, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Sect, with its vast influence and immense wealth, had a branch in Star Luo City, making it easy to obtain a bidding qualification.
Xu Jiujiu was momentarily taken aback. With her intelligence, she quickly realized that Huo Yuhao had been preparing for this moment all along, aiming to acquire the Dragon Whisker Ice-Fire Fruit.
However, if she attempted to raise the bid now, it would only anger Huo Yuhao, turning potential allies into enemies, which wouldn't be worth the effort.
The soul tools at the auction continued to be sold one after another, with most of them being purchased by Wang Yan with great enthusiasm.
It seemed that after the tragedy in the Ming Dou Mountain Range, Wang Yan had learned his lesson and was determined to initiate reforms related to soul tools at Shrek Academy.
Even so, even Mu En, the most authoritative figure in the Sea God Pavilion, had to rely on his strength and prestige to force the old-fashioned martial soul department to concede and buy soul tools for their students.
Wang Yan, however, was still a minor figure, merely an ordinary teacher in the outer court with no significant influence. Attempting to start a "Westernization Movement" at Shrek Academy would likely result in predictable failure.
Once Dragon God Douluo Mu En passed away, Shrek Academy would fall into the hands of Yan Shaozhe and Xuan Zi, and at that point, the soul tool department's downfall would be imminent.
Without Huo Yuhao, the fated child of the plane to turn the tide, the old and decaying Shrek Academy might look as vibrant as ever on the outside, but inside, it was already in ruins.
Meanwhile, the Sun Moon Empire had been preparing for war for countless years. When their armies finally marched, Shrek City would undoubtedly meet the same fate as Spirit City from ten thousand years ago, reduced to rubble.
Finally, as the auction neared its end, the elegant auctioneer approached the front of the stage and, in a hushed, mysterious tone, said, "Honored guests, our mystery gift is about to appear, and it will be the final item of tonight's auction. Originally, it wasn't supposed to be here, but to thank our esteemed guests for their continued support, our chief auctioneer has allowed us to add this item. Although its price is quite high, I believe that anyone who understands its true value will find it worth every coin. Now, let our assistant bring out the mysterious gift."
A cart slowly rolled onto the stage from the side, and unlike the previous items, this time the cart was much larger, covered in a vibrant red cloth.
Everything at Starlight Auction House was color-coded, with gold being the most prestigious, followed by the same red as a hundred-thousand-year soul ring. Clearly, this mysterious gift was extraordinary.
"I'm sure you're all eager to know what this mysterious gift is. It's getting late, so I won't keep you in suspense. This final auction item is something very common yet indispensable for every soul engineer."
"However, today's item is entirely different. It's not a soul tool, which is why it doesn't truly belong here. But its connection to soul engineers is too significant. Before I reveal it, let me say one last thing: its value and rarity make it worthy of our top-tier auction. Now, please, take a look!"
As the red cloth was lifted, the item beneath was revealed.
It was about half a foot long and as thin as a finger, tapering from a wider base to a sharp point at the top, with a blade about half an inch wide at its base.
It was ancient and black, with faint engravings on it, exuding a rustic yet somber aura.
"A carving knife is an essential tool for all soul engineers. A good carving knife is crucial for advancing to higher ranks. What you see before you is more than just a good knife—it's a ranked carving knife!"
"In the ranking of carving knives on the Douluo Continent, the top 100 are the most renowned. Unfortunately, more than two-thirds of them are in the Sun Moon Empire. This is one of the reasons why their soul engineers are so numerous and powerful. The carving knife before you is one of those top 100 ranked knives."
Although Wang Yan didn't understand much about carving knives, upon hearing the phrase "ranked carving knife," his interest was piqued.
In Shrek Academy, there were only two ranked carving knives, held by Dean Xian Lin'er and Fan Yu. Even Vice Dean Qian Duoduo didn't have one.
No matter the cost, Wang Yan was determined to bring this carving knife back to Shrek Academy. A ranked carving knife was of immense significance to the academy.
"Princess Jiujiu, why would Starlight Auction House auction off such a treasure instead of keeping it for themselves?" Huo Yuhao asked, glancing playfully at Xu Jiujiu.
"Starlight Auction House has a reputation for honesty. Any item sold here is guaranteed to be authentic, and we would never sell a flawed or problematic item without informing the buyer first," Xu Jiujiu replied. "This carving knife, however, does come with some issues."
Huo Yuhao chuckled. "Indeed, such a sharp and malevolent aura can only belong to the cursed Soul-Devouring Knife."
The auctioneer, hearing Huo Yuhao's words, was taken aback. "You're quite knowledgeable. Yes, this carving knife is ranked 99th, known as the Soul-Devouring Knife."
"In truth, its abilities should place it much higher, possibly within the top 30. Its lower ranking is due to its cursed nature."
As the auctioneer explained the knife's cursed history, many potential buyers lost interest.
This was a notorious blade, capable of turning its user into a bloodthirsty evil soul master. Wealthy, yes, but not foolish, they had no interest in inviting disaster into their homes.
"However, as long as no soul power is injected, it won't harm its owner. As a ranked carving knife, it's still a valuable collectible," the auctioneer reassured.
"The starting bid for the Soul-Devouring Knife is 100,000 gold soul coins, with minimum increments of 5,000 gold soul coins. Let the bidding begin!" she announced, smiling.
In truth, the auctioneer was far from pleased. The Soul-Devouring Knife had been in their possession for years, an unsellable item that had become a financial burden.
If anyone actually wanted to use it, even fewer would dare. High-level soul engineers were far more valuable than any ranked carving knife, and not even the Star Luo royal family would risk conducting such human experiments.
The history of the Soul-Devouring Knife could only be described as brutal. Including its creator, no one who ever possessed it had survived more than ten years. Although it had been around for over three thousand years, it was sealed away for most of that time.
Now, its starting bid of 100,000 gold soul coins was approaching the cost the Starlight Auction House had originally paid for it, yet still, no one was interested in purchasing it. After all, who would want the soul of an evil soul master following them around?
Starting with a ghost haunting you—you think you're the protagonist of a fantasy novel or something?
Let it remain unsold, she thought. They were used to it by now.
These were the thoughts filling the auctioneer Qing Ya's mind when suddenly, a voice rang out from the audience.
"One hundred thousand gold soul coins."
In the front row of the VIP seats, a placard was raised. The number on it read 333.
Qing Ya froze for a moment. This was the first time someone had placed a bid for the Soul-Devouring Knife since it had been at the Starlight Auction House!
After her brief shock, she was overwhelmed with joy. She knew that if this blade sold, she would receive a one percent commission. That was a whole thousand gold soul coins!
Even if she spent her days at the male model clubs in the Star Luo Empire, she could live off that for years!
More importantly, if she helped the Starlight Auction House finally offload this troublesome item, her auctioneer rank would likely be upgraded from purple to black. With that promotion, she'd earn even more and could find even more male models.
In her excitement, Qing Ya momentarily forgot to respond.
"I bid one hundred thousand gold soul coins," Huo Yuhao repeated, raising his placard once more.
"Ah?! Yes! VIP number 333 has bid one hundred thousand gold soul coins. Are there any other bids?" Qing Ya snapped back to her senses and quickly responded.
Even though they couldn't see Huo Yuhao's face, the sound of his voice and the vague outline of his figure from behind made the Shrek Academy group recognize him.
Even those unfamiliar with soul tools like Bei Bei and Xu Sanshi could sense from Qing Ya's introduction and the silence in the room that there was something wrong with this blade.
But Huo Yuhao had already bid. What was he thinking?
However, since Huo Yuhao was bidding under his own name and had already half-left Shrek Academy, neither Wang Yan nor the other students had the right to interfere with what he wanted to do.
Even the great Xuan Zi, who was second to none in the academy, couldn't intimidate Huo Yuhao. He often teased the old man, so the others certainly had no reason to interfere with his decision.
In fact, Wang Yan had initially considered bidding for the Soul-Devouring Knife. Although Qing Ya had described it as a deadly item, Shrek Academy had several powerful figures with Light attribute Spirits.
Both Dean Yan Shaozhe of the Martial Spirit Department and the mysterious leader of the Sea God Pavilion had Light attribute Spirits.
Even though the blade was created by a ninth-level soul engineer who was also an evil soul master, even if that engineer were still alive, he wouldn't be able to stir up much trouble at Shrek Academy, let alone when all that remained was a remnant of his soul.
However, when Wang Yan saw Huo Yuhao bid, he gave up on competing. Not for any special reason—he was willing to let Huo Yuhao have the blade. If necessary, he could ask the high-level members of the Sea God Pavilion to help purify it.
He considered it a gesture of gratitude toward Huo Yuhao, who had fought for Shrek Academy and saved him from being scapegoated and handed over to the families of the deceased inner court disciples.
In fact, it was fortunate Wang Yan didn't bid for the Soul-Devouring Wicked Blade. Otherwise, Mu En would have been in big trouble.
Even with the Sea God's Light empowering him, purging the curse of an evil soul master from a carving knife wouldn't be difficult for an Ultimate Douluo. However, the blade wasn't made of ordinary rare metals but rather of Lifeblood Gold.
If Lifeblood Gold were tainted by evil intent, not even Mu En could purify it—he might even lose his life trying.
In that case, Wang Yan would have truly become Shrek Academy's biggest sinner.
After Qing Ya repeatedly asked for any more bids, the hall remained silent. No one wanted to bid on this cursed blade, knowing that placing a bid would mean the purchase was final.
"One hundred thousand gold soul coins, first call."
"One hundred thousand gold soul coins, second call."
"One hundred thousand gold soul coins, third call. Sold!"
Bang. The auction hammer came down, declaring the sale of the Soul-Devouring Knife to Huo Yuhao.
Seeing the curious look in Xu Jiujiu's eyes, Huo Yuhao smiled and said, "Since Her Highness came in person to host this auction, I can't be heartless. Buying the Soul-Devouring Wicked Blade helps the Starlight Auction House get rid of a major problem. Consider it my way of returning the favor."
Hearing this, Xu Jiujiu smiled faintly. Although she wasn't sure how Huo Yuhao had learned about the Starlight Auction House's connection to the Star Luo royal family, it wasn't exactly a secret with the presence of the young master of the Nine Treasures Glazed Sect here.
More importantly, Huo Yuhao's actions were a gesture of goodwill toward the Star Luo royal family, fulfilling her purpose for attending.
Meanwhile, Ning Tian was a bit worried about Huo Yuhao purchasing the Soul-Devouring Knife. However, she knew Huo Yuhao never acted without reason. Since he decided to buy the infamous blade, he must have a way to use it.
He casually pulled out a card to pay. A mere hundred thousand gold soul coins were nothing to Huo Yuhao now—a small price to pay.
After receiving the Soul-Devouring Knife, Huo Yuhao used his spiritual detection to examine the blade.
The moment they made contact, the blade seemed to transform into a bottomless black hole, madly devouring his spiritual energy. At the same time, an incredibly chilling, malevolent force accompanied by terrifying bloodthirsty energy surged through his mental probe, trying to invade his spiritual sea.
When that vicious energy reached his spiritual sea, Huo Yuhao felt as though his spiritual power was being split in two. It was an uncomfortable sensation, as if his head were being forcibly cut open.
Sensing the menacing aura emanating from the blade, both Xu Jiujiu and Ning Tian were startled. However, in the blink of an eye, a pair of icy white flames flashed in Huo Yuhao's eyes.
The malevolent soul wave that had tried to invade his spiritual sea trembled when it encountered the aura of the Frost Ice Flames, then quickly retreated back into the blade, not daring to emerge again.
Thunder, flame, and light were the three forces that most effectively countered such sinister soul waves. No matter how cruel or fierce the evil soul master who had created the Soul-Devouring Wicked Blade had been, he was no match for the naturally destructive power of the Heavenly fire, which instantly drove him back.
"Yuhao, this carving knife made from Lifeblood Gold is no ordinary item. With it, some of the problems you're facing will be solved. My wisp of consciousness will also be safe from disappearing," Electrolux said in his mind as Huo Yuhao inspected the blade.
"When I saw this Soul-Devouring Wicked Blade, I knew you had to get it at all costs."
"I can help you purify its malevolent energy, but that's not the best option. Store it away for now. When you absorb the silver heavenly fire, it will serve a purpose," Electrolux advised.
"Oh? What do you mean?" Even Yao Lao chuckled at this, leaving Huo Yuhao puzzled.
Damn it, can you stop being cryptic and just say it clearly?
"Don't worry, boy. When we get back tonight, I'll refine the Earth Spirit Pill, and you'll understand," Yao Lao said with a laugh.